First Take SA

The eThekwini Municipality has been identified as among the hardest hit by the floods. eThekwini mayor, Mxolisi Kaunda says at this stage they are unable to quantify the extent of the damage caused by the heavy rains. He held a virtual media briefing, where he revealed that a number of power stations had been severely affected by the storms. Nonkululeko Hlophe filed this report...

The University of eSwatini has closed all three of its campuses due to protests by students. King Mswati has reportedly deployed soldiers and the police to shoot at protesting students, according to local media reports. Law enforcement were dispatched at the university yesterday after students engaged in a protest action calling for the fall of King Mswati. Successive protests over several months...

Elvis Presslin takes a look at the current top African economic stories with Victor Kgomoesoana, author of  "Africa Is Open For Business" and "Africa Bounces Back". Victor is also the Executive Director for Marketing and Communication at the University of Limpopo

Eskom has suspended Stage 2 load shedding as of 5 am this morning. The power utility implemented Stage 2 load shedding just after 6 pm yesterday after Unit 5 of the Medupi Power Station tripped taking some 700Mega Watts capacity with it. For more on this Elvis Presslin spoke to Eskom spokesperson Sikonathi Mantshantsha

The Pietermaritzburg High Court has granted former President Jacob Zuma a postponement in his corruption trial to May 17th. This is to allow the President of the Supreme Court of Appeals to reconsider his petition for leave to appeal against Judge Piet Koen's dismissal of Zuma's special plea that calls for the recusal of the lead prosecutor - Advocate Billy Downer. Two judges of the SCA had earlie...

The Jacob Zuma Foundation has announced that the former President will pursue a private prosecution against lead prosecutor, Billy Downer, in the corruption trial linked to the arms deal case, which is expected to get underway in Pietermaritzburg, in KwaZulu-Natal today. Zuma faces multiple charges of fraud and corruption alongside French arms dealer, Thales, over the controversial multi-billion r...

Zandile Gumede has been elected as the new ANC Regional Chairperson of the Ethekwini region. The regional conference was marred with delays over the weekend as delegates fought over credentials and questions on whether the party's Regional Task Teams should be allowed to vote in the conference. Nomination for leadership positions saw former eThekwini Mayor Zandile Gumede accepting the nomination i...

The trial of seven senior government officials accused of looting public funds during the funeral of former president Nelson Mandela is expected to start today. Former Eastern Cape Health MEC Sindiswa Gomba, former mayor Zukiswa Ncitha and several others stand accused of defrauding the Buffalo City Metro of R10 million, linked to the funeral of the former president. The former officials allegedly...

The wife of Burkina Faso's assassinated revolutionary leader, Thomas Sankara, says she is relieved after his successor was sentenced to life imprisonment for his role in the 37-year-old's murder. In reacting to the sentence, Miriam Sankara told members of the media that the people of Burkina Faso and the public would now know who her husband was and the values he stood for. Sankara was gunned down...

United Democratic Movement leader, General Bantu Holomisa says the concerns of organizations such as 'Operation Dudula' are legitimate although their methods of addressing them may be questionable. Holomisa has written to President Cyril Ramaphosa asking him to consider forming a multi-party committee that will look into bringing back peace in black townships and protecting the country's sovereign...

The Consortium for refugees and Migrants in South Africa has condemned the killing of Zimbabwean national, Elvis Nyathi in Diepsloot, north of Johannesburg. Nyathi was stoned to death and set alight on Wednesday night after scores of disgruntled residents went on the rampage in protest following multiple murders and robberies in the area. The residents accused him of being in the country illegally...

President Cyril Ramaphosa will visit Mangaung, a metro that is currently under administration, this coming weekend. He will hold a Presidential Imbizo at Dr. Petrus Molemela Stadium in Bloemfontein on Saturday. For more on this, Jon Gericke spoke to SABC senior reporter in the Free State, Ishmael Modiba

National Treasury director-general, Dondo Mogajane is leaving the department after 23 years of service. Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana says Mogajane has decided not to extend his contract which expires in June this year. Instead, he will pursue new opportunities outside of the public sector. Jon Gericke caught up with Mr. Mogajane...

Time to take a look at the current top African economic stories.....Jon Gericke spoke to Victor Kgomoesoana, author of  "Africa Is Open For Business" and "Africa Bounces Back". Victor is also the Executive Director for Marketing and Communication at the University of Limpopo...

Eastern Cape Premier, Oscar Mabuyane has suspended the Provincial Superintendent General of the Department of Education, Dr. Naledi Mbude. The Department came under fire for failing to obey a court order to supply learner support material on time, the non-payment of education assistants last year -- and the loss of a 205-million rand conditional infrastructure grant from the national department, d...

Disgruntled Diepsloot residents, north of Johannesburg have attributed the high level of crime and murders to the influx of undocumented foreign nationals in the area. Yesterday scores of residents took to the streets to protest, blockading several roads with rocks and burning tyres to voice their concerns about police visibility. Addressing Diepsloot residents yesterday, Police Minister Bheki Cel...

The City of Cape Town is expected to launch its Land Release Programme on Friday which is aimed at building affordable housing within the inner city. The programme is aimed at bridging the gap between well located vacant land within the City centre and the need for affordable housing. The initiative will be targeting private developers together with housing financiers and social housing institutio...

The wife of Burkina Faso's assassinated revolutionary leader, Thomas Sankara, says she is relieved after his successor was sentenced to life imprisonment for his role in the 37-year-old's murder. In reacting to the sentence, Mariam Sankara told members of the media that the people of Burkina Faso and the public would now know who her husband was and the values he stood for. Sankara was gunned down...

The formal bail application of 27 people implicated in alleged passport fraud has been postponed to Friday this week by the Krugersdorp Magistrate's Court. The group was arrested during an early morning sting operation last week through a collaborative raid led by the Hawks working together with the Home Affairs Department and the Johannesburg Central Tactical Response Team. The suspects are belie...

City of Johannesburg's Group Forensic and Investigation Services says it has successfully returned 51 buildings to their lawful owners in the past 5 years. This comes as the unit says it returned a building to its owner in Denver, in the East of Johannesburg. This week, the civil movement Operation Dudula said it will be approaching the Public Protector to investigate the government's role in the...

Security Officers and Cleaners have been camping outside Edenvale Hospital in Johannesburg, for over a month in makeshift tents due to unpaid salaries. The employer Jack Cliffy Trading has reportedly not paid 3 months' salaries to over 40 workers who were assigned to the hospital. JackCliffy Trading has since terminated its contract with the provincial Department. ActionSA is considering taking le...

Time to take a look at the current top African economic stories.....Jon Gericke spoke to Victor Kgomoesoana, author of  "Africa Is Open For Business" and "Africa Bounces Back". Victor is also the Executive Director for Marketing and Communication at the University of Limpopo

The Democratic Alliance says foreign embassies in South Africa must be billed for the treatment of patients from their countries in the Gauteng province. The party's Gauteng health spokesperson, Jack Bloom says this is a practical way to deal with the issue of foreign patients overburdening Gauteng hospitals. For more on this, Jon Gericke spoke to Jack Bloom, the DA's Gauteng Shadow Health MEC

The Congress of South African Trade Unions, COSATU is rejecting the proposed 3% salary increase for political office bearers recommended by the Independent Commission on the Remuneration of Public Office Bearers. The Union says this recommendation should be rejected by President Cyril Ramaphosa and South Africans. For more, Jon Gericke spoke to COSATU's Parliamentary Coordinator Mr. Matthew Parks.

The South African Communist Party, SACP has not paid its workers for 6 months according to reports from the Sunday World. The SACP and its alliance partner ANC, have had numerous financial troubles over the year in either paying workers late or not paying them at all. For more on this, Jon Gericke spoke to Dr Alex Mashilo, Central Committee Member of the SACP